Editorial

by Deborah Collins and Patricia Maché

This month, we have a collection of Brachglottis cases from the Asteraceae family of plants, formerly known as the Compositae. The plant, a New Zealand native, (puka puka) was traditionally used by Maori people to heal wounds, one of the applications of the Apiaceae family, of which Arnica is the most well-known. As we can see, it is also related to the urinary system (cystitis, bedwetting) and the digestive tract. Interestingly, considering the name, the plexus brachyialis is also affected, with wrist pains, carpal tunnel symdrome, and writer's cramp. In New Zealand, it is known as "bushman's friend", useful to have around when there is no toilet paper on hand, as the leaves are soft and hairy; in any case better than urtica urens! It is also useful for writing on, as an impression leaves a legible imprint. The cases presented all show an important emotional aspect of the remedy, the role of the father or father figure, someone who one can look up to but also someone who could easily crush the spirit of the vulnerable child, with a dominering attitude.By presenting several cases of a relatively unknown remedy, we can gradually expand our working knowledge of materia medica and we hope to collect many such cases in the coming time. So, we invite you to send in your best cases of plant remedies. In the coming issues, we will concentrate on cases from the rose and the legume families, as well as, of course, welcoming any other gems you may have.

We also have a beautiful case from Brazil, showing how a young man with a severe social phobia was treated successfully with Beryllium Nitricum and how the homeopath came to this little known remedy. We look forward to more contributions from Latin America in the future.

From France we have a butterfly case, Apeira Syringaria, complete with proving details and mythology, which shows the treatment of a talented young girl with severe emotional problems.

In his column, Jan pays tribute to Tinus Smits, an innovative and dedicated homeopath, who passed away on the first of April.